Tui sent us an update from France – read on to hear about school, skiing, and language challenges!
Bonjour à tous!! This letter signifies the passing of a whole five months away from home! Or in other words, the halfway point of my 10-month French exchange!
Time is truly an unstoppable force, a blink-and-you-miss-it ordeal that has never felt more evident. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, I suppose! As I mentioned in my previous letter, I am still having a blast, and France has been doing wonders for my mind and soul— trips to Paris, the snow on my doorstep (!!), and days spent with other exchange students from all around the world.
At this point in time, homesickness is still a relatively foreign concept, and apart from the occasional FOMO, I’m not yet ready to go home.
In regards to the language, I’m happy to say that my French is getting better (finally). My comprehension has significantly improved, and on a good day I can understand just about everything (even Spanish class sometimes!). I can now read books in French (if they’re not too advanced), and have conversations with my host family and classmates. I still have a lot of trouble with speaking, but once you have the understanding down-pat, the speaking will naturally follow.
Of course, many mistakes have been made, like when I had to give my first presentation a few months ago, and the whole class laughed at me when I confidently replied to a teacher’s question with “yes!” (it wasn’t a yes or no question). Or when I got the words ‘excited’ and ‘horny’ mixed up (… don’t ask) (it was a traumatising discovery). But it’s all a part of the exchange experience, and it’s honestly comparable to someone prying open my brain with their fingers; literally opening my mind to the world of linguistics— and life in general, in fact.
In my opinion, the hardest part of my exchange has definitely been the school. French school in particular is quite difficult, especially in comparison to New Zealand. For starters, the hours are from 8am – 5pm, and if you include the commute and the extraordinary amount of homework you’re given, I really don’t know how these French kids are surviving. I’m just glad I don’t have to do the end-of-year exams! Feeling very nostalgic for the chill and laid-back atmosphere of my NZ school, that’s for sure.
The future is also looking very bright for me, as I’m heading to the mountains in the next school holidays— skiing and snowboarding, here I come! A trip to Spain is also in the cards before I return home, along with many more day trips that I am yet to be aware of, but are sure to present themselves in due time. We’ve also had, and are going to have, various exchange students stay with my host family and I during the school holidays, which is never anything short of fun. Nothing cooler than a group of international students, I assure you!
To conclude, my exchange is certainly not going to waste, and for that I am incredibly grateful. ‘Youth is wasted on the young,’ they say, and I’ve only just come to realise the true significance of that phrase. Currently in the progress of making a kaleidoscope of youthful memories for me to look back on in wistful nostalgia!
Keen to make your own incredible memories? Enquire now!